A/N: Hi everyone, here's another chapter, sorry for the delay, RL has been manic! And I wanted to get to a certain point for this chapter. To my latest followers/favourites, welcome aboard! So glad to have you with us! To my reviewers, thank you so much! You all rock!

To my guest reviewers: Sue Dooley: Thanks! Tony will do great! He'll make Gibbs proud

Momcat: Thank you! Tim is falling yea, so he will be say dissapointed. Gibbs will find it a challenge to stay away from the reports & checking it, but Tony will do well. Regarding RL, its actually winter her in Australia - a very cold one! I wish I could go to somewhere warmer, so I'm in the middle of university semester!

Guest: Thanks for your review, Tim & Kelly didn't have scenes where they were totally hooked, but they did have moments eariler one, when she made her escape home where it was just then, and the pair did get an appreciation for each other. Tim's not upset upset, but he will be say dissapointed at the lost chance.

"Kelly darling, I know you're concerned about Mikey, but we have to be patient & wait for the base to go off lockdown from their exercise" Shannon said gently to her girl as they sat on the couch together.

"I just want to hear from him, know he's ok" Kelly sighed, she just wanted to hear his voice.

"I know you do darling" Shannon conceded "I remember a time when dad was at work, he'd barely gotten back from his deployment, you were about 5 months old & I really wanted to talk to him, no I wanted him to come home. I tried calling the base looking for him & like now, they said the base was on lockdown & no calls were going through" maybe sharing this would help her girl understand that they couldn't always contact their loved ones when on a military base.

Kelly just rested into her mum & listened.

"I got so frustrated about the lack of communication & I was calling almost every 2 hours that the operator eventually hung up on me & told me not to call back" Shannon remarked

"What did you do then?" Kelly asked looking up to her mum.

"There was nothing I could do, I had to wait for the base to go off lockdown & for dad to call me" Shannon answered.

"Did dad call you?" Kelly asked

"I did" Gibbs remarked from near the door, he'd come in earlier without either realising but he let them speak as soon as he realised what his wife was talking about. He moved to sit down with them & smiled at his girls "I called mum as soon as my C.O. had finished speaking to me about how mum tied up so much of the operator's time"

"You got into trouble for mum calling the base?" Kelly asked surprised

"Not trouble angel, he knew I was recently back from a deployment & a new father to boot. He counselled me on how as a marine we have to sometimes not be reachable to our families even if we want to be" Gibbs answered, to him, this was one the hardest aspects of being a marine, not being able to be in communication with his girls when he was at home but working.

"OK" Kelly breathed, she realised why her parents were talking to her about this, she let out a breath, guess she'd just have to wait until after lunch to get in contact with the base & speak to Mike.

Shannon & Gibbs shared a smile, glad the little story had help her realise she needed to be a little patient.

Kelly wondered something though "what did mum want?"

Gibbs smiled "didn't tell me over the phone, just said I had to get home"

"What had happened?" Kelly asked, maybe something had gone wrong?

"I thought something was wrong with you, so I bolted home" Gibbs remarked, at the time he thought there was something massively wrong with his baby girl but "when I got home, the sight wasn't what I had expected"

"what?" Kelly wondered

"Mum was lying on the floor right next to you on your play-mat & she was grinning ear to ear. She beckoned me over in a rush" Gibbs said smiling at his wife.

"Why?" Kelly asked, her parents were just smiling at each other.

Shannon cuddled her girl but smiled at her husband "you had rolled over for the first time & I wanted him to see you roll"

Gibbs returned the smile "I dropped down next to you, left a little room. Mum put you on your stomach, I smiled at you & the next thing I knew you had rolled over onto your back & smiled up at me. I got the biggest shock of my life, you then rolled onto your stomach & started playing with my fingers. Couldn't believe it, it was definitely worth rushing home for" he finished with a smile to his little girl, my gosh, his little girl had been so little back then, she was now 21!

Kelly saw her parents just smiling at each other but wait "you kept calling the base because I rolled over?"

"I did" Shannon nodded "dad had missed your birth, your first smile, I didn't want him to miss another first & hear about it over the phone" she finished letting a tear run down her cheek. Her husband has missed so many firsts now with not just their girl, but their boy too.

"I'm glad mum called, because I loved seeing it" Gibbs remarked as he wiped away the tear from his wife's cheek "and I'm not going to miss any firsts anymore" he knew what his wife was thinking, because he was thinking it too. What he knew though was that he wouldn't be missing another moment of any of their lives!

Gibbs just sat there with his girls for a few moments caressing each of them, they needed it, all three of them. He knew though it was time to move on "Kell angel, Tony wants to know if you're ready to do your interview?"

"I guess" Kelly shrugged, she was both feeling a little better about not being in contact with Mike & down about all things her dad had missed.

"Ok, let's go & get it over and down with, mum & I will be there for all of it" Gibbs remarked, he certainly wasn't going to not be there for it & knew his wife would feel the same way.

Kelly let out a breath as she typed, she was trying to write but not focus on what she was writing, it was really hard though, she just tried letting the words flow from her fingers without really going through her brain. She was used to writing long reports for college, but her statement on what had happened was just too emotional. She was blocking it out as best she could, it was a technique her mum had taught her. When she was younger she found herself unable to write about certain topics without crying so her mum helped her work out ways to curb her emotions & just write, it had helped her so much! Right now one of the emotions she was trying to block out was her worry for Mike, she understood what her parents had told her & logically she knew it was valid, but it still didn't stop her worrying about him, she just wanted to hear from him!

As she sat there though she grew more & more well, gobsmacked, she'd been subtly watching her dad for a good 20 minutes and she really wasn't believing what she was seeing, how could he be soo slow?! He was working on his statement on a laptop just like she was. He had said he wanted to be here in the conference room with them instead of at his desk and he was typing, well finger stick typing if you could call it that & my goodness, he was so so slow!

Gibbs sat there, he was typing up his statement, he couldn't actually write the report & he was still annoyed about that! He'd done his interview like his girl had, and what an experience that was! being on the other side of the table for that one! Now though, he had to write it up from his perspective, and it was painstakingly slow, his wrecked shoulder certainly wasn't helping the matter! And he'd just taken another dose of painkillers, his various wounds were still hurting & as much as he tried to hide the pain, his wife could see the moment the painkillers wore off & demanded he take more. His wounds though weren't the only reason for his lack of concentration, his mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, he was thinking about how his wife was going in her interview with Fornell, he wished he could be there, but for starters he wasn't allowed & for another, he agreed with his wife that they shouldn't leave their girl alone right now.

Gibbs knew the chat his wife and he had had with their girl had calmed her a little about not being able to communicate with the base in Frankfurt, or in particular with Mike but she was still fairly tense about it. And right now, the only pair of people that had any hope of keeping her calm were the pair of them, they were actually trying to isolate her because they could handle her mood, others on the other hand were finding it a challenge. Ok, if he really thought about it, he handled it because that's what he'd do, he was her dad & would always handle things for her, but he wasn't really comfortable handling this, Shannon was far more at ease handling this.

This in itself was fraying his nerves, it was complete & utter new territory for him, having to come to terms with the fact that his girl not only had had a boyfriend, but was apparently together with the boyfriend she'd been with for 2 years, and that boy was a marine, and an officer! yea, this was a lot to take in! A crap load if he really thought of it, he'd read through Mike's service record & he had to say he was impressed, the kid was definitely a high achiever in the academic side of things but his physical fit-rep's & weapons proficiency tests were outstanding as well. He basically seemed to be the type of guy that would fit the 'marine poster boy' model, he was sure there was something there to find that he wasn't good at, that was 'wrong' with the boy, he needed something that he could press the boy on to find out what he was made of.

What Gibbs knew though right at this point in time was he was being stared at by his girl & he had no idea why, after a moment longer he finally looked to her "what?" he just hoped it wasn't going to be the same question she'd asked all morning, 'can't you call Frankfurt back already?'

Kelly didn't realise he'd noticed her staring "ahh….. you need some help typing?" she didn't what say he was going slow, and maybe it was because of his shoulder that he was slower than he should be.

"You've got your own statement to write up Kells" Gibbs remarked "do you need some help?" the other reason he was in here & not at his desk, was so he could give his family support while they wrote their statements up. He knew it wouldn't easy for any of them & wanted to give them whatever support they needed.

"It's ok, I'm almost done" Kelly remarked "I can help if you need it, it can't be good for your shoulder" she added.

Gibbs got a little confused, he moved his chair closer to her "Kell angel, your statement has to be thorough, it has to detail everything you went through with Tony" he said calmly as he stroked her back, they'd done her interview first but even with her having gone first she couldn't be done yet, it was way too quick.

"It is detailed, it's about 7,000 words" Kelly said quietly as she leaned into her dad, talking about what she'd written wasn't that easy, the interview had been hard enough.

"You've written 7,000 words already?" Gibbs asked surprised, he looked at the screen & he saw that she was already over 10 pages, my gosh!

"Yea" Kelly nodded quietly

Gibbs realised she'd gone quiet again, just like she had during the interview "come 'ere angel" he encouraged as he pulled her into his lap "now, can you find us a game to play on this thing?" he smiled into her ear, they could have a short break.

Kelly smiled as she leaned into her dad, the feeling of security was unmatched. Yea, she felt safe with Mike & her mum of course, but it was different, sitting in her dad's lap with his arms wrapped around her she just never felt safer "what type of game?"

Gibbs considered it but "you choose angel, whatever game you want" he really had no idea about any games these days.

Kelly considered it "Pac-Man face off" she finished with a smile.

Gibbs licked his lips with a smile "sure, Pac-Man it is, ladies first" he remembered playing Pac-Man with her when she was a kid.

Fornell took a breath "Thank you Mrs Gibbs, I think that covers it" this had been one of the most difficult and awkward victim statement interviews he'd ever done "once you've written yours up you can give it to Agent Wallace, he'll check it off"

"Of course" Shannon nodded, this hadn't exactly been easy, but she was glad her husband wasn't here for it "you're not going to show it to Jethro are you?"

Fornell he had to wonder why she didn't want him seeing it "you don't want him to see it?" he asked, he just couldn't help himself.

"I'd rather not, he wouldn't shall I say, be thrilled with my various exchanges between the trucks I took" Shannon admitted, he really wouldn't!

Viviane had sat in on the interview for two purposes, one to make sure Shannon had the right support during the interview & the other so she could get a better understanding about everything. This was the 3rd interview she'd sat through and it just got worse & worse! And she had one to go, Phoenix's, she wondered how that would go? Right now though, she had to admit she understood Shannon's reasoning. Her husband would hardly be thrilled if she hitched numerous rides with truck drivers across half the country!

Fornell realised what she was getting at "of course ma'am, I will ensure Wallace does not allow Jethro to see it" he finished looking to his agent whom nodded in agreement.

"Thank you" Shannon said, letting out a breath, she wondered something though "if I could ask, how long have you been friends with Jethro?"

"A while ma'am" Fornell commented, he thought it best to not say a single word about the fact that Jethro had introduced him to Dianne. He wondered when & how his friend would tell her about his well, ex's, that would be sticky! Wait a sec, he just found about his wife & daughter, well family being dead, then alive, did Dianne know about them? He'd have to come back to that, best get back on topic "He's one of the best men I know, best instincts by far"

Shannon let out a small smile "I'm aware of his instincts, did he take care of himself?"

Fornell really wasn't liking where this conversation was going "best he could ma'am" he had to stop this from continuing "I'm not trying to be rude ma'am, but I need to check on a few things before I do some more interviews" he really wasn't feeling comfortable with these questions.

Shannon nodded "of course, sorry to delay you" she knew he was side-stepping the question, but she wanted to get some sort of an idea about it, she needed something before going to the house.

Viviane watched as Agent Wallace escorted Shannon out of the room she then looked to Fornell "the man didn't take care of himself I take it?"

Fornell sighed "he took care of himself like any guy would, a guy who'd lost everything & everyone he'd love" whilst he'd never known about Gibbs family before a few days ago, he'd had a more than ample time over the past few days to think about just how his friend acted and his reaction to certain situations & alike, they were making so much more sense now! He just wished his friend had told him about it earlier!

Viviane saw the truth in his eyes & it was a sad truth "its being fixed now"

"That it is" Fornell agreed "and I want these men to rot in jail!"

"Rot they shall" Viviane agreed "you put it together, make it air tight & I will ensure they don't get away from the charges"

"Deal" Fornell agreed, this was the first lawyer he actually liked working with!

Jack was ever so glad to be in DC, while he knew he had to stay behind & make sure his store was ok & everything got taken care of he was glad to be in DC now. Though it did feel strange to be here, it had been a great many years since he was last here. He knew it wouldn't be all rosy, especially with his son but after everything he'd learnt he just had to be here. He was following Agent Banks towards the building when he caught a sight and just had to stop.

Banks saw Jack stop & the reason for it, he knew he'd stay here for now "I'll take your things inside for you Mr Gibbs, if you have trouble at reception please just call me" though he would give them a heads up on him coming & get the relevant visitor badge sorted, just in case Gibbs hadn't done so yet.

Jack looked to the young man "Thank you Thomas" he nodded before he moved closer to the sight before him.

Henry smiled as he received another pass "that's quite the right foot you've got there Phoenix" they'd been out here for a fair while & he had to admit, the young boy was quite good, especially with encouragement.

Nix smiled "thanks, I've even beaten Keeps! And I almost beat Mike too"

"Once shrimp, once" Samuel remarked coming closer to the trio.

"Could do it again" Nix grinned

Samuel gave him a smirk "ah huh, not likely"

"Have you heard from your friend Lieutenant?" Henry wondered

"The base is undergoing an emergency drill sir, but I haven't heard anything else. Spoke with his brother Myles too & he hasn't spoken to his brother since midnight & he was still trying to work out when he could get back here" Samuel answered, that had been a fun conversation too!

"You spoke to Myles?" Nix queried, he really liked Myles!

"I did" Samuel nodded as he crouched down "he wanted me to tell you that he will get here as soon as he can, but you need anything & you can call him. You can call me, Mike, Myles like always shrimp. I'm also betting you can even call Harry & Henry here from now on too" he'd always be there for Phoenix.

"Absolutely" Henry remarked "I live but blocks away from where your dad's place is & Harry's other grandparents are but blocks from where you are currently staying, you can call any of us" he said sincerely.

"Thanks" Nix whispered, feeling a little overwhelmed, he'd never had so many people available to him!

Henry smiled but he could see that the boy felt a little overwhelmed "what's say to a bit of 2 on 2, if you can stick around for a little while Lieutenant?"

"Would be my pleasure" Samuel smiled, but he caught sight of an older gentleman standing a short way away, just watching them, but he watching Phoenix more to the point. He took a protective stand in front of the young boy "can we help you?" he asked loud enough to be heard.

Henry had seen the shift in the young marine & turned instantly, if the kid felt trouble, it wouldn't be good. What he saw was an older gentleman, that may have looked familiar, he wasn't sure? He though, like Samuel changed his stance to be in front of Phoenix.

Harry's eyes went straight to the person Samuel had spoken to & his eyes widened, ow boy! He had to act fast! "Mr Gibbs" he greeted kindly

Jack had seen a young marine tense & move to protect his grandson, he didn't know who he was but it actually filled him with comfort that he had people around him that would protect him, he wasn't quite sure who the older gentleman was either, but was glad when Harry spoke "Harry"

Henry's eyes flashed to his grandson quickly before resting back on the man, Mr Gibbs? It could only be on person "Jackson?"

Jack took the older gentleman in, he then looked between him & Harry & saw something, a memory twigged "Henry" he nodded

Samuel swallowed, shit! Had he just blocked Phoenix's grandfather from approaching? Crap!

Nix had moved to the side of Keeps & saw his grandfather "Hi" he greeted

Jack smiled down at his grandson "its wonderful to see you again Phoenix" he didn't want to be too presumptuous and go for a hug.

Henry could see that Jack was trying to restrain himself from reaching his grandson, he couldn't imagine the pain of loosing a grandchild only to learn about everything that Jack had. He saw though that Jack had slightly shifted focus & thought it best to do the introductions "Jackson, this is Lt Samuel Atkins, he's a good friend of Kelly's from college"

"and mine" Nix added

"And I beg your pardon, and a friend of Phoenix's" Henry smiled

"Pleased to meet you Lieutenant" Jack greeted extending his hand.

"Pleasure's mine sir" Samuel greeted shaking his hand "apologises for before" he added trying to back-peddle.

"Nonsense" Jack waved away "you saw someone you didn't know taking particular interest in Phoenix & moved to protect him, that does not bother me one bit, I'm grateful in fact"

"We were going to play some soccer, did you want to join us?" Nix asked, he wasn't sure if his grandfather could do it, but he really hoped he said yes!

"Not sure how good I will be, but I would love to Phoenix" Jack smiled, he wasn't going to be able run around, but he could definitely try to participate. He could see that his grandson really wanted him to try, so he would of course oblige.

Shannon walked into the conference room unsure what the mood would be like, they'd managed calm their girl down, but she wasn't sure how her husband would go managing her right at this point in time. Her mood went up & down, which tied in with her worry about for Mike.

She wasn't expecting this though, her husband was sitting with their girl in his lap, and they were both focusing on the same laptop screen & she wasn't sure what they were doing, but both were laughing "what's going on here?"

"Dad's Pac-Man just died, for the fourth time in a row!" Kelly laughed "I win" she grinned

Gibbs smiled as he shook his head "I haven't played the game in many years missy, I'm rusty"

"Neither have I" Kelly retorted with a grin "and I didn't die four times in as many minutes"

Gibbs shook his head as he chuckled "give it time"

Kelly smiled, playing this with her dad had been fun "looking forward to next time, but I need the bathroom"

Shannon watched as their girl left the room before turning back to him "Pac-Man? I thought you were both working on the statements?" truth be told though she was glad the mood was better!

Gibbs pulled her into his lap "on break & somehow Kells is almost finished hers already, how I have no idea"

"She's used to typing things up for college, and she is fairly fast at it Jethro" Shannon remarked "do you need a hand typing yours darling?" she didn't want him overly taxing his bad shoulder.

Tony was busy preparing for his next interview, him & Fornell were splitting the nasty ones and the other ones, they were also getting SSA Tripoli's assistance in the nasty ones, there were a few to get through! He'd done Kelly's, and would do Phoenix's after lunch while Fornell had done both Gibbs's & Shannon's. He just couldn't fathom having to interview his boss, nope! No way! He'd also interviewed one of the assailants already & would do another on later today after Phoenix's interview.

"Ah Tony" Ziva commented

Tony looked up "yea?"

"Tripoli says that Barret isn't budging & doesn't believe MacDonald is dead, he wants permission to arrange to take Barret to autopsy to show him the body" Ziva requested

Tony nodded "clear it with Ducky, he's in the middle of an autopsy as we speak, but yea take him down"

Ziva headed back to her desk as she heard the lift ding, it wasn't unusual so she sat down & went to dial Ducky.

Tony noticed a young marine had exited the lift & was approaching their area, he was looking around like he didn't know where he was going & when he drew closer he spoke "can I help you Lieutenant?" he then noticed the name badge & his eyes widened, holy cow!

"Ah, yes sir, I looking for…" he began

"Mike!" Kelly yelled as she rushed forward towards him.

A/N: So, lots going on! Mike's here! How'd he get here so fast though? And Jack's back! They family are getting through their interviews, as are Tony & Fornell, but Barrett not beliving Mac's dead, well he'll be the body soon enough!

I was asked for a listing of characters outside our core group, because there are a lot! So check out my facebook page for it! They'll also be some new fan-art going up soon!

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